DUBLIN, IRELAND - MAY 23: Gay couple Michael Barron (R) and Jamie Nanci (L) who were married in Cape Town, South Africa kiss at the RDS count centre on May 23, 2015 in Dublin, Ireland. Voters in the Republic of Ireland are taking part in a referendum on legalising same-sex marriage on Friday. The referendum was held 22 years after Ireland decriminalised homosexuality with more than 3.2m people being asked whether they want to amend the country's constitution to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

In the world’s first national vote on the issue, Ireland has elected to legalize same-sex marriage. Though votes were still being tabulated on Saturday, both sides acknowledged the ‘yes’ outcome in a what is a landslide result. The only question Saturday, vote counters said, would be the size of the ‘yes’ side’s margin of victory. “We’re the first country in the world to enshrine gay marriage equality in our constitution and do so by popular mandate,” Leo Varadkar told The Associated Press. “That makes us a beacon to the rest of the world of liberty and equality.” Varadkar is a Cabinet minister who revealed he’s gay at the start of the government-led movement to change Ireland constitution, which is heavily based on conservative Catholic values.